Hot Take: If you haven’t seen Mr. Robot, you have one thing going for you. You can binge-watch this right now. (Seriously, stop reading this and go watch it now! Why are you still here? Go watch it! Here’s the damn link… WATCH IT!)

Here at Movie Hot Take, on occasion, we might dip into other forms of media. It’ll be more discerning than movie information but sometimes there will be television so good (or sooooo bad!), commenting will be unavoidable. Enter Mr. Robot!

USA’s Mr. Robot is easily the best show to debut in years. The 10 episode first season is near perfection. I’ll be the first to admit I thought the season was going to pick after episode 6 and then again after episode 9. However, the season finale just delivered on so many levels.

Since the goal in the “hot take” section is to avoid spoilers, there’s a lot that can’t be said. But here’s a few call outs:

  • The show’s star, Rami Malik (as Elliot), is “breakout star” great. I remember Malik from an episode of Alcatraz (Alcatraz should have gotten more than a year) and thought I’d be seeing more of him.
  • The cinematography is the best for a TV show since Breaking Bad. It’s too soon to say if it is better visually than Breaking Bad but it’s already close.
  • Here’s a criticism tied to a compliment: The show hasn’t done anything new. We’ve seen this before. However, the show feels unique. What Mr. Robot does is present something derivative but feel totally organic and original. Considering the show deals with hacking and identity theft, there’s something poetic about that.
  • Like Breaking Bad, I want more of the supporting cast but, at the same time, can’t get enough of the star. I want more Portia Doubleday (as Angela). I want more Martin Wallstrom (as Tyrell Wellick). I want more Stephanie Corneliussen (as Joanna Wellick). I want more Michael Cristofer (as Phillip Price). I want a whole hell of a lot more of B.D. Wong (as White Rose).
  • The airing of the finale was delayed a week due to an image being similar in nature to the Virginia mass shooting on live television. Typically, these are slight overreactions. In this case, it was absolutely the right thing to do. Very tasteful of USA Network in light of the tragic events.
  • The bar is set high for Season 2. Good luck, Mr. Robot.